1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a rubber seal for use in a waterproof connector that is characterized by using rubber having strength anisotropy, and more particularly, to a rubber seal attached to a terminal-crimped wire, and fitting and sealing the terminal housing by applying pressure and holding the terminal inserted in the connector terminal housing in the proper position, thus preventing water leakage into the connector.
2. Description of the Prior Art
To engage and hold a terminal housed in the terminal chamber of a connector, a flexible locking arm (lance) is conventionally provided on the terminal housing, and the locking arm engages the terminal to position the terminal in the correct position and prevents disconnection.
However, because the holding strength of the terminal is insufficient with engagement by this locking arm, and it is possible for the terminal to be left with the locking arm only half inserted, a terminal locking means that is a separate component and can be used to detect semi-insertion of the terminal, and is used to double-lock the terminal and connector is often used.
In FIGS. 5A and 5B, a conventional waterproof connector is shown. A rubber seal 3 is provided on the end of the wire 2 to which the terminal 1 is crimped, the wire barrel 1a of the terminal 1 is crimped to the core wire 4 of the wire 2 extending from the rubber seal 3, the insulation barrel 1b is crimped where the rubber seal 3 is attached, and in this state, the female connector 5 and male connector 6 are each inserted to their respective terminal housings 7; the back end of the rubber seal 3 is then pressed by a pusher 8, and the terminal 1 engages with the locking arm 9 provided on the terminal housing 7.
As described above, the half-inserted state of terminal 1 cannot be completely prevented when a rubber seal 3 is used even when pressed by the pusher 8 because the rubber seal 3 is flexible. As a result, a construction in which a plastic component is integrally molded with the rubber seal and the plastic component is pressed by another part from the back is used. However, integrally molding rubber and plastic is extremely difficult, and causes problems such as increasing the number of molding cycles and increasing costs.